Sailing & Boating Advice

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Let’s say a group of four sailing friends from the States fly off to the U.S. B.V.I.’s for a week-long wonderful charter of a 42 foot monohull, touring islands and discovering legends. It sounds perfect, right? How could it go wrong? Exactly 8 days later, the group arrives home. One had just a so-so time, and the rest had a terrible time. Why? Captain Fred gives you some things to consider that may just save your chartering experience.

Captain Fred looks at the history of building boats in the mid-20th century in Southern California, and details why you probably shouldn’t build your own boat.

Once you’ve narrowed down the list, you’re ready to make some offers. Here’s some tricks to help guide you through the process, in this short guide on how to quickly and efficiently snag the boat you’re after.

Ready to find a marina, but unsure what you should be looking for? Captain Fred Greenfield gives his tips on what to look for, plus a 27 point marina checklist of potential options typical marinas might have.

Captain Fred explains why its wise to listen to all viewpoints when making a decision… including his, in this brief aside.

Are multihulls really that much better than their monohull counterparts? Captain Fred looks at the major advantages and disadvantages of monohulls, catamarans, and trimarans, and his findings may surprise you.

While the old adage “Why own the cow when you can get the milk through the fence?” is seldom is used in reference to boating, it certainly could be. I believe that begging rides is an excellent way to gain salient knowledge about boats before investing in your first, or next sailing or power vessel.

It is of paramount importance that you have some idea of where you want to go and how many other brave souls you want to take with you before you choose your “Dream Boat”.

Unless your only avenue of travel is by water, (say you live on a navigable river or lake 20 miles from town and the overland route to town is 30 miles of treacherous mountain trails where even a pack mule couldn’t go.) chances are you can do without a boat. You could walk, ride a horse, or just wait for the world to find its’ way to you. But, lets say water is your only choice to control your destiny, go where you want, when you want, a boat may be a good asset. My advice is always to prototype any tool to see how you get along with it.